Karen Hsiao - Hooded Beauties

I just received the first set of images from Karen Hsiao from her recent photo shoot using some leather gear I made. I contacted her a while ago when I came across her images on the web because I was completely enchanted by her work. I so loved the look of her photographs and artwork that I really wanted to collaborate with her, in any way possible. Some kind of project, anything, let me make some things for you, I told her. She was just bursting with creativity, and was also completely kind, intelligent and fun to boot. It was great to meet her.

Now, I have a certain ardent passion for beautiful Asian women, and of course a bit of a thing for leather gear, bondage and hoods as you might have guessed from this blog. Put the gear and girls together and you have the makings of some seriously powerful images to me - the photographs Karen has taken could have easily originated somewhere in my subconscious or in my deepest-kept dreams, but in this case the dream is made real. I find them just incredible. I just can't stop looking at them...

I love the soft, sensual feel she captures in these shots. For me, bondage is about trust, vulnerability, surrender. There is so much bondage imagery that doesn't click for me, with the whip-cracking domina towering over her cowering slave. Not that there's anything wrong with that if you like it, but I'm more into the playful, the sensual. The sadistic and painful? Not so much...

Plus, I really love hoods. To be hooded is to give up your sense of sight and sound, and this creates a focus on the 3 senses you have left: smell, taste and touch. These become amplified, more intense. It's a way to tweak your sensory system without drugs or alcohol. These open-mouth hood focus all the attention on the lips, both for the wearer and the viewer. The mouth is already one of the most sensual organs of the body. Can you look at those lips below, and not think of kissing or being kissed in a hood? Or fed a strawberry...

Some people think that hoods are about de-humanizing or de-personalizing someone, but that's just not what it's about for me at all. It is more about the sensory journey, the altered mindset a hood puts the wearer in. It lets some people relax and let go. It's not about hiding someone's face. I love the fact that inside those hoods are two very pretty girls.
It's almost dreamlike to have the things I made a few weeks ago come back to me in the form of images like these. I am just humbled and greatful for the opportunity. Thanks so much Karen, for allowing me to post and share the images. Your work is just awesome!

I am not sure if she will be making prints of this work available, but if you are interested, I would suggest you contact her directly. Karen Hsiao's website is here and her blog is here. If you want to see more of her work, please check it out!

Wishing a Happy New Year to you all...